Eleven Proven Methods To Engage Consumer’s In The COVID Economy

Eleven Proven Methods To Engage Consumer’s In The COVID Economy

By: Rob Christman, Author of “Unlocking The Leadership Mystery”

COVID-19 has changed the way Americans shop. With states across the country closing or limiting in person operations, dealerships are under increasing pressure to hit revenue goals while maximizing their operational processes in order to remain competitive. Digital operations have moved to the forefront and consumer’s acceptance of digital retailing has been accelerated by an estimated five years.

Pressure is mounting to get the most out of every area of the dealership. To get more for less or to be creative in order to make more with what’s already in place. How can this be possible?

My daughter is a Millennial and lives life staring at her phone screen. She texts me instead of calling. She’s typical of her generation. Millennials are the primary buying block across the nation. How can dealerships connect with this generation better and increase bottom line profits? The first way is to increase top of the funnel efficiencies. 

One of the ways dealerships should address top of funnel engagement is through new technologies, such as texting. Today’s consumer is tech-savvy. They are striving for personal efficiencies and like my daughter, live with their phones in their hands. They’ve grown up in a digital era. They communicate via text, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. They want things served to them fast and they want easy. They don’t want to speak on the phone until they’re ready and they don’t check email. Text is the preferred communication method for over 80% of Millennials and Gen Z.

At the same time, text messaging is an efficient and low cost way to reach prospects and move more high funnel opportunities down the pipeline and convert them into sales.

Texting will also generate traffic to your service bays, re-energize be backs and should be used to follow up with those customers who declined products in the F&I office.

Here are the top 11 tips for text messaging that top performing car dealerships use to attract  and engage with more customers without adding money to advertising budgets (yes, maximizing the lost opportunities that you’re already paying for!).

1. Make certain that you receive permission from the consumer or use a service that secures the permissions for you.

There are many methods to gain permission from consumers. Some are tedious; sending specific messages asking the consumer for permission and hoping they say yes. More efficiently, you can leverage your website to ask permission at the time that the lead gets submitted. I recommend that you work closely with your SMS or Engagement vendor to work with you on highest efficiencies without putting your dealership in legal jeopardy.

2. Keep the message short.

Consumers have low attention spans. You have a few seconds to grab and hold their attention. Keep your message to quick, concise and compelling points.

3. Use messages geared to convert lot and showroom shoppers into qualified leads

Engaging with on lot consumers and tire kickers into potential customers can be difficult, especially with customers being wary of stereotypical sales people. However, once sales associates do engage with potential customers, it is the perfect opportunity to get cell phone numbers to be able to engage with the consumer if they become a be back. While building rapport, it becomes a natural part of the conversation to ask for a contact telephone number. If they fail to purchase, you can offer the possibility of receiving text messages to get the latest deals on specific vehicles or promotions on financing options.

4. Keep it simple

The consumer found your vehicle on your web site or a third party vendor. They were specific on that vehicle. Keep your message simple and targeted to what they say they want. A text with a few concise and compelling points on the vehicle and your dealership becomes a conversation starter.

5. Appointment reminders and Calendar Invites to slash no-show rates

Consumers make appointments and then life gets in the way. They forget. They either miss the appointment leaving your sales people sitting around and waiting. Or, they show up late and your sales person is working with someone else. This causes the consumer to have a bad first impression and causes madness at the dealership.  Dealerships that use text messages to confirm appointments with customers and send them periodic reminders notice a dramatic decrease the no-shows rate.  The reason?  Customers are more likely to respond to text messages—and faster—than telephone calls and emails. With the right text messaging platform, you can automate these confirmations and reminders to unburden your service staff. Plus, you add a calendar reminder that pops on the consumer’s phone, it keeps your dealership top of mind! Tie into platforms such as Waze and the consumer will also receive reminders when it’s time to leave and the easiest routes to reach the dealership.

6. Use Video

Americans have shifted to video conferences, meetings and communication during the Pandemic period. Consumers have learned to use video to see things live while remaining in their safety bubbles. Use live walk around with the consumer to build additional trust with the dealership, the vehicle and the salesperson.

7. Thoughtful gestures, even by text messaging, can have a huge impact

As dealerships look to develop loyalty with their clients, many have begun collecting additional information in order to personalize the customer experience even further. Dealers use texts to send birthday or anniversary wishes. Treating clients as people make them feel special. It creates a bond. Bonds create loyalty and referrals. The right platform makes simple gestures easy. 

7. Be professional

Dealership Principals and GM’s are inundated with vendors having the newest and greatest solutions to their problems. You understand that feeling well! Now think about the consumer experience. Customers are hit with offers, online remarketing ads, Search Engine marketing ads, TV, radio or email. All of them hitting them with buy a car! Buy it now! Buy it here!

SMS messaging and text campaigns are the new frontier for cutting through the clutter and engaging customers with promotions. Or soliciting clients on new product launches based on their past purchase behavior or specific needs. Reach out to your client base and promote your service drive; have oil change offers? Tire rotation offers? Wipers? Use text campaigns to drive extra revenue and stay in front of this future vehicle buyer. Technology platforms can make this easy to set up regular intervals and messaging that will keep you top of mind without becoming a pest. 

8. Send periodic follow ups (persistent without being a pest)

Speaking of pests, it’s important to stay in front of your client base. To stay in front of high funnel shoppers and especially urgent to stay engaged with low funnel buyers. Sending relevant and compelling messages at strategically spaced time intervals becomes the difference between average and great at the dealership. In addition to vehicle sales, many dealerships are involved in the community. They organize special events to show their appreciation for their customers, including summer BBQs, VIP events, sneak peeks into new vehicle models.  Stay in front of these communications through text messages.  Texting customers with personalized invitations will make customers feel special

9. Use a variety of messages

Famous sales trainer and public speaker, Zig Ziglar says that no one changes their mind. Changing your mind requires you to admit that you were wrong in the first place! Now you’re probably saying that you get people to change their mind all the time. After all, the average consumer says no five times before saying yes! If they don’t change their mind, how do sales ever get made? Zig says that says that people will make new decisions based upon new information! Use a variety of messages so that consumers can make a new decision based on new information!

10. Online payments and transactional messages can simplify customers’ lives

Another way to make the consumer’s life easier and to help your dealership’s efficiencies is to provide online or electronic payment options. Get a deposit on a digital retailing transaction. Have your service department get approval and payment electronically. Provide start to finish efficiencies and you create more loyal clients and improve your CSI scores. Use text and payment platforms so that customers can pay their bills right from their mobile phones.  Strike while the iron is hot and consumers are still in an elevated emotional place!

11. Enhance customer satisfaction and get those all-elusive reviews to optimize your social proof

Consumers check online reviews first. They check them often and they rely on    the opinions of their peers. Yet getting consumers to leave reviews is challenging and tiresome. Using text messaging to encourage customers to complete satisfaction surveys or to offer reviews about their dealership experience on review sites can help to establish credibility and convince upper funnel leads of the value you bring to the table.

As the world’s economy changes, dealerships need to make shifts in processes to stay afloat and to thrive. Dealerships need to stand out, they have to be unique. To be the neon on a gray wall.  Dealerships need to engage with consumers in an easy, eye popping way and to leverage technology and technology partners. Text platforms are a powerful marketing tool. They help improve top of funnel conversions from the industry standard 50% contacts to upwards of 80%. This translates to an increase in sales of 25 to 66% on dealership leads. Money that is already being spent becomes more efficient. Consumers turn into clients. Clients become stickier and you profit in the evolving economy.

If your dealership isn’t heavily involved in a texting strategy, you need to add it to your toolbox. If you’re still not engaging today’s consumers in the way they want to be engaged, you owe it to your business to find a powerful engagement platform to bring you into the brave new economy!  

Rob Christman is a senior sales leader and automotive expert. He is the author of “Unlocking the Leadership Mystery” and “Postcards From The Road.” He is currently building a sales team for Matador.ai to help dealerships communicate with today’s automotive consumer the way the consumer want to be communicated with.